National Target for Protection of Forest Land

The election manifesto makes protection of forest areas a central part of work for biodiversity and the right to roam, and requires that the forest's function as a carbon sink is preserved. The counter-proposal's requirement for a national goal of 30 percent protected forest land aligns with this, even though the plan does not specify any quantified target. The party programme furthermore makes long-term environmental considerations overriding other interests.

• protection of forest areasdecisive»Skyddet av skogs- och strandområden är en viktig del för att värna den svenska allemansrätten och den biologiska mångfalden.« (2022 manifesto ↗)“Protection of forest and coastal areas is an important part of protecting Swedish right to roam and biodiversity.”
• forest as carbon sink»För att uppnå klimatmålen behöver skogens funktion som kolsänka bevaras de kommande decennierna, därför behöver kalhyggesbruket fasas ut.« (2022 manifesto ↗)“To achieve the climate goals, the forest's function as a carbon sink needs to be preserved in the coming decades, which is why clear-cutting needs to be phased out.”
• environmental consideration overriding»de långsiktiga miljöhänsynen måste vara överordnade« (party programme ↗)“long-term environmental considerations must be overriding”
• accelerate the transition»Vi måste lösa klimatkrisen och skydda den biologiska mångfalden – omställningen går alldeles för sakta.« (2022 manifesto ↗)“We must solve the climate crisis and protect biodiversity – the transition is going far too slowly.”

The plan sets no numerical target for forest protection, but the election manifesto notes that species extinction is accelerating and biological diversity is threatened, and the party programme establishes that biological diversity must be protected and that natural resources are already used beyond sustainability limits. From these commitments follows support for a national goal of long-term protected forest in a coherent network. The conclusion is derived, since the plan does not address the scope of forest protection.

• halt species extinctiondecisive»Samtidigt accelererar artdöden och den biologiska mångfalden hotas.« (2022 manifesto ↗)“At the same time, species extinction is accelerating and biological diversity is threatened.”
• protect biological diversity»biologiska mångfalden måste skyddas.« (party programme ↗)“biological diversity must be protected.”
• ecosystems overused»naturtillgångar och ekosystem utnyttjas i dag över gränsen för det långsiktigt hållbara« (party programme ↗)“natural resources and ecosystems are used today beyond the limit for long-term sustainability”

The plan takes no explicit position on what the committee actually decided — often because the committee's reason was procedural. The stance is derived and fully cited, but it does not show the party broke a commitment.

The election manifesto contains an explicit numerical protection target: 30 per cent of Sweden's nature shall be protected, explicitly including protected forests throughout the country. The party programme moreover states that the protected areas are too small and that particularly valuable forest shall be protected from felling. The counter-proposal's requirement for a national target of 30 per cent protected forest, of which 20 per cent productive forest, is precisely the kind of target the plan commits to.

• protect 30 per cent of naturedecisive»skydda 30 procent av Sveriges natur, bland annat våra unika sammanhängande fjällskogar och skyddsvärda skogar i hela landet.« (2022 manifesto ↗)“protect 30 per cent of Sweden's nature, among other things our unique connected mountain forests and protected forests throughout the country.”
• insufficient area protection»Sveriges och EU:s skyddade arealer är för små och otillräckliga för att kunna säkerställa den biologiska mångfalden.« (party programme ↗)“Sweden's and the EU's protected areas are too small and insufficient to ensure biological diversity.”
• protect valuable forest»Särskilt värdefull skog ska skyddas från avverkning.« (party programme ↗)“Particularly valuable forest shall be protected from felling.”
• modernize forestry»att mer skogsbruk bedrivs med hyggesfria metoder.« (2022 manifesto ↗)“that more forestry is conducted with clear-cutting-free methods.”

The stance rests on the quoted commitment in the party's own documents; the actual vote deviated. Click the quote to verify it in the document.

The plan's bearing commitment is that sustainable forestry presupposes active use and good conditions grounded in strong property rights. A binding target to protect thirty per cent of forest land, of which twenty per cent productive forest, would exempt large areas from use and go against this. The plan builds nature conservation on voluntariness and property rights rather than on numerical protection targets.

• active use of the forestdecisive»Skogen är en nyckel i den gröna omställningen. Ett hållbart skogsbruk förutsätter ett aktivt brukande av skogen.« (2022 manifesto ↗)“The forest is a key to the green transition. Sustainable forestry presupposes active use of the forest.”
• strong property rights in forestry»Skogsbruket behöver goda förutsättningar grundade i en stark äganderätt.« (2022 manifesto ↗)“Forestry needs good conditions grounded in strong property rights.”
• voluntariness-based nature conservation»Mer måste göras för att restaurera våtmarker, bekämpa invasiva arter och underlätta för markägare att bidra, då frivillighet och äganderätt är grunden för en bättre naturvård.« (2022 manifesto ↗)“More must be done to restore wetlands, combat invasive species and make it easier for property owners to contribute, as voluntariness and property rights are the foundation for better nature conservation.”
• owner responsibility for natural values»Det man äger har man också ett ansvar för att vårda.« (party programme ↗)“What one owns one also has a responsibility to care for.”

The plan's stated forestry-policy commitment is that the production target and the environmental target shall be equal and that Swedish forestry shall be valued. Protection shall according to the plan be directed at valuable nature and the remaining old-growth forests, not driven by area targets. A numerically-bound target of 30 per cent of forest land and at least 20 per cent of productive forest land lacks support in the plan and subordinates the production target.

• production and environment equaldecisive»Den svenska skogspolitiken ska vila på två jämställda mål, produktionsmålet och miljömålet.« (party programme ↗)“Swedish forest policy shall rest on two equal targets, the production target and the environmental target.”
• valued Swedish forestry»Allemansrätten och det svenska skogsbruket ska värnas« (2022 manifesto ↗)“Swedish traditional land use rights and Swedish forestry shall be valued”
• targeted protection of old-growth forest»De återstående gammelskogarna ska ges starkare« (party programme ↗)“The remaining old-growth forests shall be given stronger”
• protect valuable nature»Då behöver vi fortsätta arbetet med att skydda både värdefull natur och den biologiska mångfalden.« (2022 manifesto ↗)“Then we need to continue working to protect both valuable nature and biological diversity.”

The plan requires that production goals and environmental goals have the same priority and standing in forest policy and warns in the election manifesto that property rights over forests are threatened. A numerical target of 30 per cent protected forest, of which 20 per cent productive forest, exempts land from use in an extent that breaks that balance. The plan certainly wants to conserve forests in sufficient extent, but directs it by natural values and landowners' participation rather than by a percentage.

• production and environmental goals equaldecisive»Det är angeläget att dessa mål har samma prioritet och dignitet vid utformandet av den övergripande« (party programme ↗)“It is important that these goals have the same priority and standing when formulating the overall”
• valued property rights in forests»äganderätten över skogen hotas« (2022 manifesto ↗)“property rights over forests are threatened”
• protection through nature consideration and reserves»både reservatsskydd i olika former och stor naturhänsyn i skogs- och jordbrukslandskapet« (party programme ↗)“both reserve protection in various forms and great nature consideration in forest and agricultural landscapes”
• sufficient reserve protection»skog behöver reservatsskyddas i tillräcklig omfattning« (party programme ↗)“forest needs to be reserve-protected in sufficient extent”

The election manifesto states plainly that the area of forest excluded from forestry should decrease and finds that nearly 30 percent is already taken out of production. A national goal to protect 30 percent of forest land therefore goes in the opposite direction to the plan's commitment. The plan moreover wants formal protection to happen through voluntariness and rests on strong individual property rights, which argues against numerical protection targets.

• more forest to be manageddecisive»Minska ytan av skog som är undantagen från skogsbruk« (2022 manifesto ↗)“Reduce the area of forest excluded from forestry”
• already large area excluded»Idag är närmare 30 procent av skogsmarken tagen ur produktion« (2022 manifesto ↗)“Today nearly 30 percent of forest land is taken out of production”
• protection through voluntariness»Stärka skogsägarnas äganderätt genom att formellt skydd av skog ska ske genom frivillighet« (2022 manifesto ↗)“Strengthen forest owners' property rights by formal protection of forest happening through voluntariness”
• property rights as stewardship»Den enskilda äganderätten är central i förvaltarskapstanken« (party programme ↗)“Individual property rights are central in stewardship thinking”

The plan states that adapted forest management shall be prioritised before reserve set-asides and that biological diversity can be achieved without extensive expansion of reserves. A binding target to protect 30 per cent of forest land, of which 20 per cent productive forest, goes directly against this. The plan also wants to protect Sweden's self-determination over the forest against the EU and that set-asides happen voluntarily.

• management before reservesdecisive»Att anpassad skogsskötsel prioriteras före reservatsavsättning« (2022 manifesto ↗)“That adapted forest management is prioritised before reserve set-asides”
• diversity without more reserves»Biologisk mångfald går hand i hand med ett aktivt och produktivt skogsbruk där man genom ny teknik och smarta metoder kan uppnå målen utan kostsam och omfattande utbyggnad av reservaten.« (2022 manifesto ↗)“Biological diversity goes hand in hand with active and productive forestry where through new technology and smart methods one can achieve the targets without costly and extensive expansion of reserves.”
• voluntary set-aside»Avsättning av skog till reservat ska ske på frivillighetens grund och med god ersättning.« (2022 manifesto ↗)“Set-aside of forest to reserves shall take place on a voluntary basis and with good compensation.”
• national forest decision»Värna Sveriges självbestämmande över skogen gentemot EU« (2022 manifesto ↗)“Protect Sweden's self-determination over the forest against the EU”